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2013-10-04 - Chemical Warfare: What is Weakness
It is approaching late evening when Bruce finally returns home. He actually comes in via the front because he drove to Wayne Enterprises. It is what he finds that makes his heart skip a beat. "Alfred! Damian!" The front door is smashed in, nothing more then firewood and tender. He races in, alert and eyes searching when he reaches the base of the stairs. The railing is broken in one place and completely gone in another place, and to the right of the stairs is Alfred. A knife is in his right shoulder, the blood having gelled, his face swelled, and a shotgun laying nearby having been fired once. "Damian!" There is no answer. And as Bruce reacts to tend to Alfred, he uses his cell to contact Oracle immediately to report the incident. It still takes summoning Carrie back to the mansion early before things can get straightened out. Carrie is asked to also drive Cassandra out to the Mansion. In the meantime, Oracle will assign Mockingbird and Lady Blackhawk to start scouting for signs of a missing boy with dark hair. Batman does his usual demand of taking charge of this particular mission. Carrie and Cassandra will find Bruce conflicted. He quickly will get Carrie to assist with tending Alfred with Cassandra as an assistant to her, as he finally parts from his father figure to go back upstairs to investigate the stairs area. He will find blood on the floor where the railing is completely broken. And it is only after testing it back in the Bat Cave that he realizes it is chemically altered blood, an artificial super soldier. There is one man he has been watching with this signature, "Vandal Savage." That is when the reports change, and those involved in the mission can hear Batman's rough and dark voice. All but Mockingbird would recognize the voice, "Vandal Savage took the boy. His purpose is unknown, but his plan to release chemical agents in Gotham City to wipe out most of its population must be underway and scheduled for tonight." Oracle can yell at him later for NOT telling her about this. "His current cell's headquarters is in the Forbidden Zone," an area that never fully recovered from the Earthquake and retained it's names. It is lawless, and mostly occupied by gang members and some homeless. It is only then that Alfred finally wakes, to recount the attack of five individuals in red and black, and how they took Damian. He apologizes to Bruce for not being able to stop it, and the man only places a hand on Alfred's good shoulder, "You did fine Alfred. I'll get him back safely, just rest and take care of yourself." Making sure the IV is secured, and part of him reluctant to leave, he readies himself as he puts on Batman's armor and orders Batgirl and Robin to ready themselves as well for deployment to meet Mockingbird and Lady Blackhawk in the Forbidden Zone. Cassandra Cain has helped over with Alfred, her face masked even without her mask on. It is when the signal is given for the rest of the team to deploy that she goes to gather her gear. She has not faced Vandal Savage before, but she knows that it takes a special kind of monster to survive the worst that humanity has ever had to offer, and worse yet to thrive on it. And that Vandal Savage's long lifespan will give him tricks the likes of which she has not faced before. It is deploying into the field against an enemy the likes of which she has not fought that has her not quite timid, but not enthusiastic either. Instead, there is a creeping wariness. It was all a blur. Carrie had done her duty and gotten Cassandra here though it had taken borrowing Selina Kyle's car to do so. Once in the door... The world began to crumble around her once again. Alfred, injured and bleeding, was almost enough to put her into shock as memories flew back to the surface. This time though she was here. THIS time she could do something. Barely does Batman even have the words out of his mouth to urge her to assist before she's already doing just that. If he hadn't wanted her to, he would have had to stop her physically to avoid it. Time passes though and when she's told to suit up she does just that with haste, and no waste words for once--Other than to offer Alfred a smile and assure him she'll take care of Bruce and Damian. SOMEONE had to. Zinda's voice, quiet and grim, "I'm on my way." It's Bruce's kid. They have to get the boy back. For once, the pilot sounds deadly serious as she makes her way to the coordinates given. Deadly serious. She has guns. That's how serious she is - of course she doesn't plan on killing anyone, but putting them in the hospital is allowed, right? Right. "Mockingbird here." That's Bobbi Morse. "I think I'm on site..." her voice is quiet, probably a sub-vocal mike. "Doesn't look terribly defensible, maybe there's some below-street tunnels or somethin' they're protectin'. I see..." there's a tiny bit of noise as she shifts around. "... hmm. That's can't be all of 'em, but these guys up here look in bad shape. Bat-boy must've given them hell. Kinda glad, actually. Still, there's a few I can see, must be more. DOn't have a full count." Batman offers the keys to the motorcycle for Carrie. It's Robin's motorcycle too, Drake can yell at him later for doing that. That means less cramping in the Batmobile, when Batgirl jumps into the passenger seat with Batman. The trio take off! When the report from Mockingbird come in, Batman is silent for only a few short moments before he says, "Bat-boy?" A snort at that. Well, guess that's one thing to call the 'random kidnapped kid' reported, since no name was actually provided and only a vague description as there wasn't even a clear photo that could be obtained that didn't include Talia, and no way would Bruce have O.K.'ed showing that to outsiders. Note to self, get a photo of Damian. "Do not approach. They are Savage's personal elite, super soldiers." Still, there is some pride in Batman that Damian gave those bastards hell. They hurt Alfred and kidnapped his son. Batman is not planning to go easy on them either. Batman takes all the short cuts he can, and Carrie will find a GPS system on the bike, and one currently liked to follow the Batmobile so she doesn't get lost. They are almost to their destination. As the group speeds through the streets, Cassandra is quiet then. She has not faced such elites before, so they will be a challenge. Ordinarily she likes challenges, but this time, things are going to be difficult with a hostage and the group going into an obvious trap. T he fact they have heavy backup alleviates some of her concern as she goes along with the others, but internally she is worried. "Got it. Waiting for you." Lady Blackhawk slips herself into the shadows to watch, not approaching further until the full group is there. She doesn't want to get her butt handed to her, after all. Not like it would be the first time, but... "Roger that." Mockingbird the a well-trained agent confirms. "Waiting on backup." She adjusts the controls on her glasses to have a closer look. "I think I'm in a good position to cause a distraction if you all decide to go in another way. You're the boss." and she waits, out of sight for now. Robin takes well to the bike with a bright grin that would be one of pure excitement if not for the fact that there were far more serious matters at hand. It's a smile none the less, but not a carefree sort. There was business to be tended to. Donning the helmet that came with it all to better hide her identity she fires the bike up, looks over the controls, and then takes off following along at breakneck speeds. A voice which is unknown to all but Cassandra and Batman comes over into the conversation on the radio. "Even elites need to sleep, Boss. Got a few toys to help with that." "Oracle," expecting her to still be with them. Batman advises, "See if you can get control of satellites to track activity. Savage will be planning to release the chemical bomb tonight, and he won't give us much time once we save the boy. It's a distraction technique, so we need every edge we can get ahold of right now," he warns. Batman is following the distraction though, which is strange for him for those that know him well enough. He's going for the boy. Batman at least does say over com, "I lift your restriction on your arrow use...Robin." It doesn't come off smoothly still, but then again, Robin is a boy isn't he?! Least that is what the rumors say. And wears a bright costume consisting of primary colors with a big oval on his chest and very, very tight short shorts. Is Batman trying to tell us something? Cassandra arcs along with the rest, her only acknowledgement so far of the instructions being a nod that somehow carries along her commlink as the group gets there. Oracle types on the computer as Batman talks to her. "If. Sure." she says, having already accessed 2 military satellites and one of the Luthor satellites to a good view of activity in the area from various angles. She brings it up to a 3D moving image of the lay of the land. "Got a few of them already. Going to see if I can patch into any cameras down on the ground as well." "Natch, Boss." Robin merely grins as she bears down on the throttle zipping and zooming through the city streets and sometimes on the sidewalk when necessary. "Could handle the kid while you get the bomb. Promise I'm a good babysitter." It's a suggestion she doubts will be followed but the point was there--They were working on a time limit after all. Still watching. Now she's got a gun out...just in case she needs it. Lady Blackhawk tilts her head slightly as she listens to the comm chatter, waiting for the rest of the team quite patiently. (Fortunately, this time, Cassandra isn't with her). Batman soon pulls his car up on the edge of the Forbidden Zone, and the roof slides open as he and Batgirl leap out. The roof will slide back closed after they are out and Batman pulls an emergency kit out from the back before the car armors and locks up for security. The Bat then moves, quietly as he zones in on Mockingbird's and Lady Blackhawk's location. These aren't the heavy hitters of the Birds of Prey, which means Batman is going to need that emergency kit. The comlink is silent, apparently he isn't accepting Robin's offer. It is only as he arrives that Mockingbird will see The Batman for the first time. There are white film lenses covering his eyes to not reveal the color, and a displeased and grumpy expression on what little bit of his face is exposed as if he frowns constantly. He is a well-built man, and he knows how to use his size and the cloak to make it count. "Lady Blackhawk, Mockingbird." The most in greeting he gets from him before he unzips and drops the emergency kit down on the ground. "Tear gas, gas masks, smoke bombs, flash grenades," he informs. There are also some extra Batarangs in there, along with small almost dollar coin sized devices. Batman pulls those out, "Bombs, controlled blast radius, can still take out three feet of concrete." Though he looks at Mockingbird as she is new, "No killing." No trust ladies and gentlemen, as if that needed a rocket science to guess. That's what he has The Club for. Flippingher way out of the other side of the cab, Batgirl lands islently, going along after the others. She nods over at Batman's instructions over with the bombs, and goes to wait for Batman to give the plan of attack then, and whether she'll be sent along with Zinda and Mockingbird or with another group. Not long after Batman and Batgirl arrive does the higher pitched roar of a motorcycle engine approach. Cutting the throttle Robin leans to the side half-skidding the bike sideways until it comes to a halt near the group. It's a controlled momentum in spite of the size of the vehicle compared to her. That's right. The helmeted Robin that sits astride the bike with one foot planted firmly on the ground as the other lifts to kick the stand down with her heel is indeed a girl. In a smooth motion she dismounts leaving the now-silenced motorcycle sitting there, waiting, as she reaches up to pull the helmet off with both hands. It's set down, and she strides toward the grouping already here getting the crash-course on the emergency kit that Batman had lain out. Reaching back Robin swings a compact black-bow with a particularily familiar wing-shape design off her back. It's too small to be functional--At least until she thumbs the release causing the ends to snap out elongating it and pulling the string tight. Her free gloved hand lifts extending toward Batman who was showing off the small bombs. "Take a few, Boss. I can give us a distraction, and open up a path inside. We're going to need to split these people up." Her green eyes dart around the others here, known and not. "Got enough peeps for guerrilla tactics." Lady Blackhawk merely nods to the Batman. Sure, she has a gun. She didn't kill anyone with it last time either. "So, it's time to go kick some butt, maybe bother to take a name or two. Maybe. Not sure their names matter." She flickers a grin around, more relaxed now the group's all together. Mockingbird nods at Batman and the girl appear. "Understood." If he's impressed by the Batman she doesn't show it. She's been around thunder gods and giant green rage monsters. But Gotham does things to people and she can see why the villains are afraid of the shadows here. She smirks a bit as she is warned not to kill. "You're the boss." she repeats. "You said these guys were super-soldiers, so no need to hold back, huh?" She sobers, though. "Don't think we should split up. They must be underground, so why don't we move in as a unit and secure the entrance... or at least insert ourselves into the compound, collect the hostage, and withdraw. We can fight them another day, on our own battleground." Batman says, "Two teams, watch each other's backs." He is silent for a moment as he weighs some options. He doesn't want to leave the other team defenseless. "Robin with me, the rest are in the other team." He moves toward the edge of the fallen building they are by and looks out over the expanse, tapping the side of his cowl to change the lenses. He hrms quietly. "Robin and I will go straight up the center, be the distraction." He gives one of the kits to Batgirl, which holds quite a number of those coin-sized bombs he explained earlier. "Gather what supplies you need. Second team will head out along that ridge," and he points. "Oracle will act as your guide. Be careful of underground surprises. If there is an issue, I'll make sure Robin can get to you. You don't need to go easy on these guys, it will take a lot to kill them, but they are still mortal. I doubt Vandal Savage is here, but if he is, do not attack him." After Batman waits a few moments for people to gather, he takes the time to pull out a small set of binoculars to get a look at his meditating son. He can see in the shadows discoloration...he was harmed. His mouth presses into a thin line of obvious displeasure as he slips them away and pulls out other items from his belt to prepare, including electrified brass knuckles for his hands. "Go," he orders, only giving the crew about two minutes to get into place before he boldly starts walking out into the open. The soldiers visible have guns, but they don't open fire yet as Batman moves into obvious view with no cover. Cassandra Cain nods over, and then moves to follow along after Lady Blackhawk and Mockingbird. After a moment, she gestures over at Mockingbird to take point as she goes to put the weapons over in her utility belt then as she follows along with Zinda. This will let her observe and evaluate the newest member of the Birds, and give her a chance to shine. Up the middle. Not her first choice, but it was definitely Batman's style. Robin tips her head to the side at Batman listening to him explain though it's clear by her posture there's a silent question as to it. It only lasts a moment as she falls into line with the plan. Swinging the bow back over her shoulder it's tucked back where it belongs hidden beneath her cape so that it's not obvious. Instead she pulls out her metal slingshot prepping a few spherical balls between her fingers for quick use as this was far quicker than just arrows. Plus he'd never banned her on the use of this. It's only once they've split from the other team that she murmurs quietly for Batman's ears only, "We'll get him out fine, Boss." Batman does a slight, silent nod that perhaps only Carrie will catch. But he stands there in the open, female Robin half hidden behind him. The 'leader' of the elites at this cell steps forward a bit, bandaged up in which the bandages are visible through holes in his bloody shirt. "Ah, Batman," his accent a little thick, sounding Arabic. He crosses arms over his chest. "Master said you would come, when he makes things move, others dance." Batman is silent however, unmoving. "The boy is safe for now, but you cannot have him yet. You have a choice to make. To die, or to escape. If you choose escape, I will tell you the location of the 'copter, and you can leave with the boy and the girl you appear to have picked up." "Neither," is the growling reply from Batman. "As the Master thought," his arms uncrossing. He then turns away to head toward the broken house, < Kill him. I will kill the demon head's grandchild. > The last words are in Arabic. Batman moves, tossing out six grenades, all tear gas, releasing them at intervals toward his opponents. He is already moving in a zigzag pattern, a low growled, "Keep low," command to female Robin. Batman is predicting the movement of the guns and avoiding them as he moves in, not afraid to get close and personal with the Super Soldiers as he has the brass knuckles to seize even their nervous system. Mockingbird take up a mask, gas bombs, and a couple of the mini-explosives. "Neat." Then she's on her way, staff ready to deal with these 'super-soldiers'. Better to keep them out of striking range. "I think I got some idea of where the entrance is." and she hustles in that direction. "Probably don't have much time now that the alarm has been raised." Cassandra Cain is heading along after Mockingbird, giving the other girl a half dozen steps ahead of her as she waits for the signal from Bobbi to attack and advance, gesturing for Zinda to come along with her. This is going to be an interesting fight, and she's ready to give her end over into it. Lady Blackhawk snags a mask and gas bombs, tucking the gun back into its holster before moving out. Don't hold back, but please try not to kill them. Very typical Batman instructions. Moving quickly along the ridge, she pays attention to everything that might be a threat; i.e., everything but her companions. By the time the bombs are thrown Robin has already slid a small gas mask into place herself. It was a mouth-fitted one, small, personal and not bulky enough to ruin her line of vision. She too moves through the smoke with eyes squinted. The slingshot comes up snapping off several shots--Ones with rather deadly aim. Deadly at least for those of the male persuasion given where she aims, and the fact that she was hitting them with metal balls in the not-so-metal balls. Those that might fall who are close enough to her earn a boot to the back of the head before she leaps them to head to the next. They may be elites but she was all about efficiency. Batman leaps, his own gas mask in place as he punches the first one in the face, sending electric shock right through him and closest to the brain. He crumbles. Now if only he could get punches in like that all the time! Not likely. He's already moving however, as bullets still fly, and two super soldiers withdraw swords to come at him. He doesn't take them on as he did Talia's men, using his metal gantlet blades to deflect rather than block and capture even as he rolls out of the way as another sword chops down and barely misses him. He punches at the nearest one knees, before he moves to his feet and takes a leap roll to a safer area. He's moving through them, not to take them down before moving on, but to instill chaos and confusing and to do what damage he can. The noise outside draws Damian's attention. The boy stands from where he's sitting, a quick smooth motion despite the beating he took after he stabbed the leader of the 'elite's a few times. The boy's dusky face is badly bruised and one eye is almost swollen shut but he's unbound and at the moment at least it seems nobody is watching him. He decides to make a second try at escaping and begins to towards the sounds of fighting. And so the girls leap in and charge towards the melee, Mockingbird, Lady Blackhawk, and Batgirl going in to charge the group of super soldiers in their direction while Oracle coordinated the two teams on camera and commlink, the girls likely having the mettle of their opponents. Batgirl was staying at long range, throwing razorrangs and sonicrangs mixed to try and disable and disorient her opponents an not risk going into hand to hand. Lady Blackhawk leads with gas bombs, knowing her own side is protected. They don't slow the super soldiers down much, but she is following up with fists. And high heels. High heels are remarkably effective, especially if aimed at the most sensitive part of a male's anatomy. The leader is heading up the stairs, drawing his blade out just as Damian thinks about going down them. The boy can see him, the sneer on his face. < Time for a little revenge demon head's child. > It seems even Savage treated Damian as an al Ghul rather than as a Wayne. Batman is still moving, his primary objective the building, and he releases a few more grenades as well, before knocking electric brass knuckles into a super soldiers side and then into his cheek, cracking it and sending him down to the ground where he twitches. He is breathing a little hard, not usual for Batman, but he is also throwing a lot more strength into his attacks and doing much more dodging than he normally does. He makes a point to keep an eye on Robin, not wanting to overly risk her either. His ability to balance priorities is shattering...so this is what it means to have family. Damian is hurting and the leader can probably see the half-dozen subtle signs of it in how the boy moves but his face doesn't show it. He backs away from the stairs giving himself more space to work with < I thought you'd be done with knives after the last time > he taunts when he stops and slips into a fighting stance. He'll wait for the elite to come to him. Cassandra Cain is protecting Zinda's flank, weaving in and out along in the background as the group of Birds engage the Super Soldiers. No matter how hard she strikes, they seem to get back up, which annoys her. So she strikes harder. At some point, she will find a level and they will not get up again from it, so she is content with her level of experimentation. He was flagging. Robin notices though she says nothing--It was obvious and it was not the first time she had seen him push himself so much. Which meant it was time for her to assist him. The slingshot is slapped back to her thigh in it's holster and she shrugs the bow forward with the same motion. Her free hand extracts a single arrow from it's spot on her thigh and she stands up straight suddenly to aim and release with one smooth draw. The just recently-altered arrow flies through the air to impact with the side of the building itself setting off the directional explosive she'd affixed to the tip. It would be enough to create an opening in the wall. A new entrance, or exit, or simply another distraction. Either way it was not something that would be expected and that was the important part. Not waiting to see the impact she knew would occur she moves back to Batman keeping close to him with another arrow notched and ready. "Peel, Boss. Got this." Whirling around to face an oncoming elite she releases the string letting the arrow fly toward his thigh. Lady Blackhawk manages to offer Cassandra a grin before thrusting her elbow into a soldier's solar plexus hard enough to make him grunt and even double over some. Sounds like she's looking for the right level of force too. They do keep getting back up, don't they. < I won't have a problem now that I can kill you. > The leader then leaps into an attack, a feint at first, to try and psych out Damian. Batman hesitates, but finally nods at Robin. What he pulls from his pouches this time are the coin-sized explosives. When he presses them to active and toss them, they explode and send earth flying everywhere to disorient and knock-back the super soldiers as he heads for the newly made entrance. Damian is ready for the leader's strength and speed, but he didn't expect the feint, he ducks when the false strike begins and then leaps up to grab an arm that isn't there. It gives the leader an opening, but Damian still manages to snap off a kick at the knife wound he'd left in the leader's side earlier. Robin smiles reassuringly at Batman when he pulls out the explosives to toss them around. It was exactly what was needed. Diving back into the fray she darts to and fro avoiding direct combat so much as making quick, fleeting strikes against her opponents. Cassandra Cain is zigging and zagging outside with Zinda and Mockingbird, and they seem to be slowly finding ways to hit the Evil Super Soldiers in ways that eventually they won't be getting up from! Damian can feel his flesh parting beneath the blade, but it isn't as deep as it could be. A grunt comes from the leader as he side-steps to get away from the kick. His eyes seem to burn. He goes in again to attack, making his next attack not quite a fient, but rather it just comes up a little short before changing directly. Batman finds the stairs quickly and heads up them when he sees what is going on. He races and flings himself at the Savage elite soldier as he makes to attack Damian yet again. The two large bodies roll, and Batman grunts as he is punched awkwardly with the pummel of the sword. The world spins, but there is a zap perhaps heard from his brass knuckles as he goes to show the super soldier exactly why Batman is so frightening...he never gives up. Carrie knows Bruce has it in him to just start beating someone senseless, effectively, violently, and without compassion. Most never see that though. There is an expression of fury on Batman's half exposed face, his mouth pulled into a snarl, "Don't...ever...touch...my...-SON-!" Batman actually forgets to stop hitting after the soldier stops moving, until a few punches later. His breathing is not the most steady, and his muscles ache, his head still spinning. Damian watches his father pummel the super soldier half to death, and doesn't move to stop him. Actually he steps forward and picks up the man's fallen sword, the blade casting a strip of silver light across his battered face. Seeing his father is dazed and tired, he sees an opening and strikes, driving the blade point past his father at the super-soldier's throat. Lady Blackhawk tosses another gas grenade into a bunch of them a distance away. It has some effect, although not as much as she'd like. "Still, they don't *like* tear gas, at least." Because of Batman being dazed, he...doesn't get it right. He jerks his hand forward, but rather than his forearm gauntlet catching the blade, it's his hand. He knocks it off-center, the man's throat being cut, but not life threateningly as the blade also slices through Batman's hand. "Don't," his voice sounding rough. His rage was real, but he stopped himself...as he goes to stop his son with risk of his own limb. "You are better than him, don't stoop to his level; no matter what." And perhaps right there, Damian may see....Batman sees killing as a weakness, while others see not killing as a weakness. Damian pulls up short when the blade goes through is father's hand and he yanks the weapon free and tosses it to the side. "He'll think you're weak you know, Savage will, he'll see that," he kicks the body of the leader. "And know we won't kill him either. You're /encouraging/ him to keep going." There is some doubt in that tone though. Not much, but some. "Vandal Savage cannot die, he is immortal. And when I am gone, another hero will rise and stop him, as they have before me." Batman moves to stand, unsteadily to his feet. "Now, we have a bomb to stop, and little time to do it; he would have arranged it so." Apparently, the caped crusader knows Savage well. He moves with his non-bloody hand and starts to drag the 'leader' over toward the broken wall. He lifts him up, holding him out over the expanse of nothingness from the second floor only however. "It is over! Even when you outnumber us, and have your drugs, you cannot defeat us. Do as you wish, but you are a waste of our time," and he drops the unconscious leader. The leader is limp, so there will be little harm compared to the beating he got from Batman from the short fall. Batman turns away as if unafraid of a bullet in his back, "We are leaving," and heads for the stairs, careful to hide his injuries. Damian scowls with frustration. How does one fight an immortal foe? Though he keeps his thoughts to himself and ducks down to retrieve the sword again. When Batman leaves, Damian goes with him sword in hand ready, following on his heels.